WHAT IS AN INTERESTING OR UNUSUAL PLACE YOU HAVE GOTTEN DESIGN INSPIRATION FROM? The ice cubes in my freezer inspired me while working on an ice rink project. I was looking for inspiration on how to incorporate an interesting, ice related feature into the lobby design. The result: we clad a large volume that housed an egress stair within the lobby with translucent panels that mimics an abstract version of a huge block of ice. (Very “cool”). WHAT IS ONE OF YOUR FAVORITE PROJECT DETAILS? When designing the Montgomery library, we needed an elegant solution to separate the children’s room from the main library stacks/reading room. We created a wood veneer frame surrounded by glass, a “feature wall” that became a visual cue, identifying the delineation and creating scale and interest within the space. DO YOU HAVE ANY HABITS BEFORE STARTING A PROJECT? I am a believer in analyzing and understanding the site and its constraints. So much design inspiration can be learned from the site and its context. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE TOOL, RESOURCE OR PROGRAM? SketchUp is the best - the easiest modeling tool that gets fast design results. WHAT DOES BEING AN ARCHITECT MEAN TO YOU? Being an architect to me means creating spaces that people feel comfortable in and can gain inspiration from.
KURT VIERHEILIG, AIA, LEED AP BD+C DIRECTOR OF DESIGN, PARTNER